gift by definition is "something acquired without compensation." If a brand manager is trying to build a brand through a gift suite he/she is wasting their time, money and products. Traditional gift suites involve dozens of brand managers sitting in trade-show style booths passing out hundreds of products to a few celebrities and a tremendous amount of inconsequential people. These events are sold to brand managers on the basis of "hanging out with celebrities" and "making valuable industry connections". The result is only a few celebrities will receive the products, and the few pictures look like they were taken at tradeshow booth. The gift suite has done nothing to establish celebrity association and therefore has done nothing to help build the brand.

• Typical gift suites do not generate quality photographs.
• Without quality photographs there is no celebrity association.
• Without celebrity association there is no value for the brand.

The overwhelming majority of experienced brand managers have experimented with gift suites only to find the results of little or no value for the brand. There is no celebrity association because the consumer does not feel the celebrity likes the brand. If there is no celebrity association there is no value to the brand manager.♦

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